By Jennifer Landis | Posted: January 16, 2020

As people around the world settle into the new year, they're also looking forward to starting fresh with resolutions that are meant to change lives for the better. You might want to eat healthier, spend more time with family, take better care of the environment, or finally earn that promotion. 

It's great to have goals in mind for your personal or professional development. As you grow, you'll change how you think about the world and how you approach challenges in your life. On your journey to those goals, you may find that you become discouraged and want to give up when things get tough.

Don't let that happen to you! You can, and will, achieve your goals this year with these tips.

1. Find your motivation

Think back to when you decided to make this year different. Was it a spur of the moment decision, or did you think things through first? Consider how you felt, what you were doing, and what thoughts ran through your mind when you first envisioned your goals.

Goals are great when they're new and exciting, but you'll get used to them, and maybe even tire of your new habits after just a few days or weeks. When that moment comes, reflect on what first motivated your goals, in order to remember your purpose and push through exhaustion or frustration.​

2. Ground your goals in reality

Everyone should have a dream, but not every dream can be a goal. Imagine that you decide you want to shift careers and become a movie producer. You can achieve that dream if you work hard and give it your all, but very few people could do that in under a year with no film industry experience. 

Think about what it will take to make your goals a reality, and decide if they're plausible. If they're not, you can adjust them so they are. Your big directing dream can become a goal to get a job in the movie industry or land a film internship. Both will get you closer to becoming a talented director.

3. Create check-in dates

Your new goals will most likely take the entire year to complete. The point is to push yourself to learn or grow every month, so you have a long-term plan on your hands. Before you get started, create check-in dates to reflect on your progress. You'll sit back and enjoy the encouragement of seeing how far you've come, reaffirming your purpose and giving you new energy to keep going. 

4. Celebrate small milestones

Another way to recognize your progress is to celebrate your small milestones like going a week without soda when you're trying to quit altogether. As you reflect, you'll realize your strength and become more grateful for what you've accomplished. Take pride in every effort, big or small. Even if you've only put one foot forward, it's still more than you would have done if you hadn't tried at all.

5. Utilize new tools

People used to keep all their important documents in binders and filing cabinets in their homes, but everything's online now. If you plan on keeping track of your goals, save that document on a cloud program so it's always secure. This is also an excellent idea for anyone who wants to become more organized. Save everything on a cloud program you can reach from your computer and mobile devices so you can backup your electronics and never lose a file or photo again.

6. Plan to stay organized

Most people would love to organize their life, but if that's your goal, you'll also need to figure out how to keep it that way. With the right tools, you can plan to stay organized and ahead of the game. Printing labels and color-coding are two small ways to keep up your organization and prevent the stress that comes with everything being in disarray. 

7. Track your growth

Even if you list your goals and cheer yourself on after reaching small milestones, you can still feel like the end goal is always out of reach. You can prevent this from happening when you track your personal growth through efforts like journaling, writing things down on your calendar, or trying a habit tracker app. Every time you record your progress, you'll feel proud of your efforts and want to keep going.

8. Set spin-off goals

You might reach your goal before the end of the year, and that's fantastic. When you finally deadlift that 200 pounds or run your marathon, what's next? Set spin-off goals so you never stop growing. It's so easy to start slacking off when you finish the plans you create for yourself, but you'll get stronger if you continue your personal growth. 

Find ways to continue on the same journey, like starting a tougher cooking class than before or trying a new method of exercising. Charting a new path forward will feel refreshing and keep you excited about growing.

Stay focused and prepared

Once you've tried a few of these tips and decided which work best for you, stay focused and prepared throughout the year. Remember that you're worth your time and energy. As you check off your goals one by one, you'll feel empowered to keep going and invest in your future growth.

Jennifer Landis is a healthy living blogger, mother, wife, distance runner, yogi, and tea connoisseur. She enjoys clean eating, but also peanut butter ice cream. She writes about mindfulness, parenting, and clean eating on her blog, Mindfulness Mama.